Arabian Days and Nights
by Gonnabe Writer
Summary: .COMPLETE.You remember those novels that Tina is always reading? What if one of them came true, and Mr Hakim Baba's worst fear is finally realised? Tina is finally kidnapped by a rival oil Sheikh, but who's gonna be her knight in shining armour?Final Chap
1. Chapter 1

_I just wanted to try something different…_

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Tina stared down at her bound hands, she couldn't quite believe that she was actually kidnapped! After all the precautions that her father had taken and even after having an all-day bodyguard (who, by the way, was lying a few feet away… Wahim was still unconscious and tied-up too), her father oil-sheikh rivals had managed to kidnap her. 'This is so cool!' Tina thought-squealed to herself.

While she waited for Wahim to wake up and tell her what to do, she mulled over the events of the day…it all seemed so dreamlike, as if the day didn't really have anything to do with what was going on now.

That morning she had woken up, and spent the usual hour in front of her full-length mirror. She had wondered, yet again, on whether she would ever actually manage to lose some weight. Her good friend Mia (the Princess) had told her she was so pretty and exotic, Mia's best friend Lilly (the Genius) mentioned something about superficial view-points and told her she was fine as she was…even her ex-boyfriend Dave (the Jerk) had told her she looked cool-though that was before he dumped her. So why did she have these hang-ups about her weight? She wasn't that chubby, her mother described her as 'gracefully curved', but she knew that was model-code for 'maybe a little too much'. Oh well, it wasn't gonna get much better than this, and she had slipped into her favourite outfit: her most comfortable jeans and an oriental-style top. Her dad had bought it for her from a recent trip to Saudi Arabia, where he was born. Her Arabian heritage contributed to her big eyes and dark, straight hair…which Mia thought was so cool.

Anyways, she remembered greeting Wahim as he came to pick her up. She thought about how her dad was weirdly paranoid, she never actually believed that she'd be kidnapped.

So now, because of her dad's madness, she was escorted the whole 5 blocks to her school. Tina remembered rolling her eyes as she sat in the car on her way to school "Wahim, have we run into any kidnappers yet?" she had asked her bodyguard sarcastically. He smiled a bit and then answered simply "No"…Yep, Wahim was definitely the strong and silent type.

Come to think of it, Tina couldn't remember much about that day. She remembered a few vague details, Mia complaining about princess lessons, Lilly asked…well, more like _ordered_ Tina to sign her petition and Boris had surprised them all by wearing jeans and a t-shirt…Wow.

Wahim moved a little and Tina looked over at him. She would have called out to him if she didn't have duct tape around her mouth. Why did they have to chloroform her bodyguard? She supposed they had left her unchloroformed because she was a girl and wouldn't make a fuss. But she had, she kicked and writhed and bit her attackers, but in the back of her mind, there was a small part that thought 'shut-up' and 'wicked'.

When Wahim didn't move anymore, Tina looked around in the apartment where her kidnappers had dumped her. 'Gross' she thought as she looked at the stained walls and peeling paint, surely oil-sheikhs could afford better places than this! There were no lights, and Tina peered at her watch, barely making out the time: 7:46. Her parents would be worried about her by now, and her father was probably having a fit and calling every police station in Manhattan, hell, he was probably calling the FBI and bringing out the S.W.A.T.

All her kidnappers had been wearing masks as they ambushed her 2 blocks from her apartment building. Wahim had been a little suspicious when the police had flagged down their car, but had pulled over nonetheless, and his guard also dropped a little more when they had flashed their badges. But within 2 minutes, they had chloroformed Wahim and stuffed Tina into a nearby car. After about 25 minutes of driving, one man had led the blindfolded Tina into a building and three men carried Wahim in. Tina's blindfold had only been removed once she'd been shoved onto the floor. Not one of the men took off their masks, so Tina couldn't work out if any of them were cute. She knew she was being weird, I mean, who tries to see if her kidnapper is a hottie? But the novel-reading part of her brain craved some kind of romance in this situation. Eventually, the kidnappers had left them alone in the apartment…

Tina turned her gaze to Wahim again as he coughed and grunted, and woke up suddenly. He blinked a few times and said, a bit incoherently, "Where are we?" Tina sighed, even specially trained bodyguards suffered from the after effects of drugging, she would have said something like "Wahim, we were kidnapped, car, cops? Anything ring a bell?", but she couldn't speak.

Wahim blinked again "Oh" as the memories rushed back to him and tentatively tested out the strength of the ropes. He didn't have much luck with the bindings on his hands and turned his attention to his feet…all in vain, he was trussed up like a turkey.

There was some rattling at the door and a masked man entered the room, he glanced at Wahim, who stared stonily back at him. The man looked at Tina and seemed a bit put-off "You're younger than we expected…" he said in impeccable english.

Tina just glared at him.

He laughed and continued "Well, Miss Hakim-Baba, we have already sent a ransom note to your father, he must think highly of you, because he agreed to our demands almost instantaneously…so we'll be letting you go now."

The relief was evident in Tina's eyes, and she lifted her bound hands, indicating that he better free her now.

He shook his hands at her gesture "No, we haven't received the money yet, so until we do, you and your little bodyguard will be taking a trip far away."

Wahim suddenly lunged at the man (how he did this with bound hands and feet is questionable, but bodyguards must learn many things in the Gobi Desert), but the man barely managed to get out of the way. He waggled his finger at Wahim "Uh uh uh, if you're not polite then we won't be polite…you wouldn't want anything to happen to Tina here, would you?"

The man snapped his fingers and a few masked cronies came in, blindfolded Tina and Wahim again and led them out of the apartment, Tina felt the cold air and breathed deeply (through her nose). She wished Wahim could have done something, or even have told her that everything would be alright, because these kidnappers were nothing like the ones in her books. Assholes, she thought angrily and hoped that her little brother was ok.

Once again, they were driven to their next destination, and Tina shivered when she was pulled out of the car. It was cold and her thin jacket didn't do much to help. The blindfold was removed and Tina looked around, this sure as hell wasn't JFK, but some makeshift airstrip thingy where a small plane was idling. She and Wahim were led into the plane and tied into their seats. 'This sucks' thought Tina, 'we should be treated with respect and one of these men have to be a total Baldwin and should save us, but is it happening? No!…this whole kidnapping thing is so wrong!"

Tina felt the plane take off and soon the gentle hum made her sleepy. She peeked at Wahim, who had already fallen asleep! She squirmed a bit, looked around, her captors seemed to be busy in the cockpit and so, made herself slightly more comfortable and dozed off too. She dozed fitfully throughout the night, occasionally waking up to peer blearily around the gloomy cabin.

"Tina! Tina!" she heard a voice urgently whispering in her ear. She shook her head and moaned "Mom, five more minutes…then I'll wake up…" well, she meant to moan that, but it came out more like "Mhf, mim mou mimus…mn mm mamm um" She squeaked when she realized she couldn't speak, her eyes flew open and she saw Wahim's face nearby.

"We've landed" he said simply and gestured to the men standing in front of them. Tina's eyes narrowed as she studied the masked men, who reached down and untied them from their seats, they were careful to keep their hands tied up though. Tina winced as she stood up, the blood rushed to her feet and prickles ran up and down her legs. The tape around her mouth was removed and they were man-handled out of the cooped-up cabin and were steered down the stairs. Tina and Wahim blinked in the hot sun.

The same masked man who had talked to them the night before followed them out of the plane. "Welcome to your roots" he announced grandly.

Tina cocked her head slightly "We're in England?" she inquired

The man coughed "What?"

"My mum's English" said Tina matter-of-factly, deliberately teasing the man.

The man seemed to scowl "No, you dumb kid, we're in Saudi Arabia."

Tina shrugged "Oh" and then noticed a slight rumbling in her stomach, "I'm hungry."

"So what?"

"I…want…some…food…and…drink." Said Tina slowly, as if talking to a small child.

The man gestured to his cronies "Take them away and put another tape on the kid's mouth"

He walked off briskly, muttering to himself in Arabic. Tina's Arabic was pretty rusty, but she tried to make sense out of what he was saying. She turned to Wahim and grinned "Either he wants a new pair of boots, or he hates spoiled kids who forget their roots."

Wahim, ever professional, just said "The latter."

Tina finally looked at the landscape around her. Far away, she saw what looked like the skyline of a city "Maybe Mecca?" she thought out loud, this airstrip was pretty desolate, except for a few old hangers scattered around the area. A guy slapped on a bit of tape and pushed them into the nearest hanger. The air in it was musty and stifling, as if the hanger hadn't been occupied in a while. They were tied to chairs again and left alone.

Wahim turned his face to Tina "You know, I never thought this could actually happen."

She raised her eyebrows enquiringly

"You know, actually being kidnapped…I told your father I would protect you and I failed…I'm a failure."

Tina wished she could hug her poor bodyguard, he looked so sad and forlorn. All she could do was shake her head.

Wahim was silent for a while, then he started to talk…and not just as a bodyguard, though he did discuss some ways of escaping, but also as a person, he told her about his wife and his daughters. He didn't see them a lot but he loved them all so much…Tina was getting a bit teary eyed as she listened to her 'strong and silent' bodyguard.

Abruptly, Wahim stopped speaking, and Tina looked at him questioningly. "Shhh" he whispered, Tina rolled her eyes, like she was in a position to make a noise!

A guy slowly entered the hanger, carefully closing the door behind him. He was wearing a mask too, and carried a covered tray in his hands. "Hi" he said quickly "Sorry about all this, but here's some food."

Wahim looked at him, he seemed like a young, really nervous boy, judging by his voice. "How are we going to eat the food, Sherlock?" as he indicated his tied hands.

The boys eyes widened, Tina noticed they were of a very different shade than normal Arab eyes. "Oh" he fumbled, than muttered "I really don't want to feed you guys by hand, though that was what I was supposed to do…could you manage with one hand?"

Tina nodded, she really was hungry.

The guy silently moved behind them and undid the rope just enough for them to slip one hand out. He then bent in front of Tina, and with surprising gentleness, started to pull the tape off her mouth. His and Tina's eyes met and he seemed to smile (well, his eyes crinkled up in the corners and you could see the smile in them).

"Hi, I'm Sameer" he said as he pulled the last of the tape off.

Tina would have been rude to anyone who had kidnapped her, but she surprised herself by replying, curtly but nicely, "Tina".

"That's a nice name, not really Arabic though." He stated

"I'm only half Arab" said Tina shyly, 'what is wrong with me?' she thought, 'I should be kicking this guys butt for what he did to me and Wahim', but she did acknowledge that he had nice eyes.

Tina tore her eyes away from him and looked at the tray that he had placed in her lap. Sameer helped both of them with small actions that required both hands, but let them feed themselves.

Tina felt better after having a few morsels and took a close look at her can of soda, reading the name printed in Arabic "Bebsi? What the heck is Bebsi?"

Sameer laughed "It's Pepsi, but since the Arabic alphabet doesn't have a 'p' sound, Bebsi is the best they could come up with."

"Oh, right." Said Tina and laughed too.

Wahim didn't say anything during this conversation, but eyed the two of them talking. Once both of them were done, Sameer apologetically retied their hands, though leaving Tina's mouth un-duct taped.

Tina looked over at Wahim once Sameer had left, "Do you think I'm crazy if I think he's a nice guy?"

Wahim looked back and replied cryptically "We'll see"

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_Hope you enjoyed it…_

_Ok, well, I was planning for this to be a one-shot, but I can't seem to put any brevity into my writing…This will be a two-parter and the next part will come tomorrow, or at latest, the day after._

_You are feeling sleepy…very sleepy…_

_You're eyes are feeling heavier and heavier…_

_You will now obey my every command…_

_You will now click the "Submit review" button…_

_And tell me I'm brilliant…or not._

_There, see? That wasn't so hard and your reviews all contribute to a good cause…maintaining my ego…lol._


	2. Chapter 2

_I know I said I'd update the story soon, but then I got writers block…lol_

_Happy reading…_

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Tina shifted in her uncomfortable chair, and glanced at Wahim who was staring stolidly ahead.

"Wahim?" she whispered, and he looked over at her, "What are you doing?"

Wahim grunted, than replied quietly "I'm thinking of a way to get out of here"

Tina blinked "Oh…ok then, I'll leave you to it."

Tina squirmed again; they'd been sitting there for hours. They hadn't seen anyone since Sameer had given them food and the heat was sweltering, she shook her hair out of her face. As she waited for Wahim to come up with a plan, she looked around the hanger (which made this, like, the 57th time) and eventually became lost in a day dream…

She wished she had a boyfriend, one that was handsome and sweet, charming and especially, she wanted a boyfriend who liked her for herself and not her father's money. Tina wasn't the type of girl who lived for boys, well, she didn't think she was, but boys were an important part of her life. She read so many romance novels and watched almost every romantic movie that came out, she even had a secret list of good-looking celebs on her computer …despite all this, she couldn't seem to hold on to a boyfriend. She knew what she wanted, but the question was whether she would find the perfect guy…one of the attributes of the perfect guy would be the approval he would get from her family. Her father had disliked Dave on principle (he was a father after all, he didn't think any guy was good enough for her), but her mother hadn't liked Dave either…maybe, next time she should trust her mother's instincts on boys?

Tina shook herself out of her daydream 'Boys' she thought to herself 'can't live with them, can't live without them.'

She looked up when she heard a noise; some people were coming in at the door of the hanger. When they came closer, she recognized one of them as Sameer, the three other men were faceless, nameless kidnappers. After Wahim's warning on Sameer, she wasn't prone to be friendly this time around.

Sameer walked up to them nervously "Hi…um, we guessed you might need to relieve yourself by now…these guys…" he indicated the three built men around him "…are supposed to make sure you don't try anything. Um, Tina, do you want to go first?"

Tina nodded slightly and Sameer came behind her to untie her hands, Tina got up and was forced to walk between the burly men, to a small room at the back of the hanger. Tina peered into the tiny room warily "At least its clean" she breathed a sigh of relief and entered. She locked the door behind her and gratefully stretched, she walked around the room a few times to loosen her muscles and then did her business. She took as long as possible in front of the small mirror attached to the wall. She pulled a small brush out of her pocket and brushed the tangles out of her hair…those monsters had emptied out her pockets and just given her back her things that couldn't be used to attack someone, or communicate with. So there went her cellphone and her nailfile. She adjusted the silver pendant around her neck and went out.

Sameer seemed relieved to see her "What took you so long? I was worried." Tina didn't say a word, but brushed past him. She didn't mean to look at him, but she caught a twinkle in his eye. She flipped her hair and hurried back to Wahim, he gave her a questioning look. She shook her head and slouched back into her chair "I hate this" she said angrily.

Wahim was taken away, but returned much sooner than she had. Tina looked down as she was tied up again, and didn't reply to Sameer as he tried to talk to her again. Eventually, they were left alone again.

"Well?" she asked Wahim

"Well what?" Wahim replied grumpily "These people knew what they were doing when the captured us, I have no idea how we could possibly escape from here."

Tina slumped "I guess we'll have to wait for daddy to get us back"

Wahim shook his head glumly "Yes" he sighed

Tina strained to get a glimpse of her watch, and then remembered that there was a time difference between New York and Saudi Arabia…she had no idea what it was though. She guessed it was almost twilight, judging from the fading light from the windows and the lessening heat.

She started to doze in her chair, for how long she didn't know, but she only woke up when she felt a cool breeze on her face. She opened her eyes to see Sameer coming in with two stacked trays, he silently untied their bindings again and placed the trays in their laps.

Tina looked distastefully down at her burger and chips, "I'm just gonna gain more weight…" she complained to Wahim "…and look at this soda, its not even diet."

Sameer, who had been sitting near them, helping whenever needed, turned to Tina "I thought Americans liked food like this…"

"Americans with unfairly high metabolisms can eat stuff like this" said Tina "Not people like me"

Sameer laughed "What do people like you eat?"

"Salad and mineral water" replied Tina quickly

Sameer stood up and hurried out, he came back with a bottle of water "I didn't have time to make a salad, but I did get you some water" and he placed the bottle on her tray.

Despite herself, Tina smiled at him. She wondered what he looked like under that mask…"Isn't it a bit warm to wear that mask?"

"Yes, it's a bit uncomfortable."

Tina said sympathetically "You can take it off if you want"

Sameer shook his head "I'd get into a lot of trouble"

Wahim spoke up "Speaking of trouble, what role do you play in this whole kidnapping?"

"Um…none, really" Sameer said uncomfortably, "I'm just supposed to look after you until you're released."

"When are you going to let us go?" Tina asked

Sameer fidgeted "I don't know…as soon as my uncle gets the money I guess…"

"Wait, you're saying that your uncle engineered this whole plot?" Tina demanded

Sameer was really uncomfortable now "Um…yes…but…I-we…he…I'm really sorry…"

"Sorry? You're sorry! If you were so sorry, you'd let us go!" Tina was angry and shouting.

"Tina!" said Wahim

"I hate you!" said Tina emphatically to Sameer

She pushed her tray off her lap, and the plastic cutlery scattered.

Sameer tied them up and left quickly after that.

Tina settled into her chair and tried to go to sleep, she didn't say anything when some other person came and spread a thin blanket over each of them. Tina eventually fell into a fitful sleep.

Wahim woke up when he felt a slight breeze and saw Sameer creeping into the hanger. "What are you doing?" he asked him

Sameer motioned for him to stay quiet and he bent and untied Wahim's bondings, "You watch the door and I'll untie Tina" he said to Wahim.

Wahim stood up unsteadily and after a quick stretch, tiptoed to the door, blinking out blearily in the darkness.

Sameer bent down and untied the rope tying Tina, Tina woke up and asked groggily "Daddy?"

Sameer shook his head and when he realized that Tina was in no condition to walk, he picked her up in his arms, and he joined Wahim at the door, "Anything?" he asked

Wahim shook his head and Sameer led the way out, slowly moving through the shadows, until they came to a small buggy.

Sameer dumped Tina unceremoniously in the back and he got in the drivers seat. Wahim jumped in at the passenger side and Sameer started the buggy. Thankfully, it had a quiet engine and Sameer managed to pull it away from the abandoned airport and into the desert.

The bumping and jolting woke Tina up properly and she suddenly sat upright "What's happening? Where are we going?"

"I'm getting you out of here" said Sameer tensely

The cold desert wind blew in their faces, and Sameer removed his mask so it wouldn't hamper his driving.

Tina caught sight of his face in the rearview mirror and gasped

"What?" asked Wahim concernedly

Tina just shook her head and Sameer turned his head to look at her "What's wrong?" he asked and his eyes twinkled again.

Tina just stared, and thought back to her list of hotties…her hottie of the month had been Sean Faris, and here was his more tanned twin staring back at her. Tina's heart was beating a bit faster than usual, but she managed to smile back at Sameer…what do you say to a guy who looks like Hollywood's newest teen-heartthrob?

"Nothing's wrong" Tina said eventually

Sameer turned his attention back to driving, and his eyes narrowed against the cold, stinging air. He saw something in the distance that made him swear in Arabic.

Tina and Wahim both asked him simultaneously "What?"

Sameer shivered unconsciously and said "Sandstorm"

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_So sue me, I said I'd finish it…but I keep adding all this other stuff in it…_

_I make a solemn promise that I will finish this story in the next chapter!_

_Oh, and Sean Faris, in case you didn't know, appears in 'Sleepover' and 'Pearl Harbour' and some TV series. Do the research if you want, but the main point is that he's gorgeous…_

_Read and Review…come on', you know you want to!_


	3. Chapter 3

_Apologies all around…I'm sorry that I haven't finished this story, but the last semester was really tough, anyways I'm on my 'research break' right now, so I though I'd finish this story._

_Happy Reading_

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"Sandstorm?" squeaked Tina "You still get sandstorms here?"

Wahim nodded "and by the looks of it, it's a bad one."

"We need to find shelter…a cave or something." Interjected Sameer

"Where are we gonna find a cave? All I see is sand!" Tina squealed

Sameer surveyed the landscape as he continued driving "I can't see anything, but if we don't find some place soon, the engine will cough up from the sand!"

Tina looked fearfully at the brown cloud descending towards them "How long do we have?" she asked

"About 5 minutes…maybe less." answered Sameer squinting in the wind.

Wahim pointed out into the desert "I think there's something there!" he yelled

"I can't see anything!" yelled back Tina

"We'll just have to take a chance!" shouted Sameer as he turned the buggy towards where Wahim was pointing.

As they got closer, the noticed a dark dot in the sea of sand. "I think it's a cave!" yelled Sameer over the increasing wind.

"I know it's a cave!" yelled Wahim

The wind was blowing harder now and sand went into Tina's eyes; she decided it was safest to just keep her eyes shut. She wondered how Sameer was getting on.

The engine started to splutter "Come on" whispered Sameer as he battled to keep his eyes open against the sand. The entrance to the cave was only a few dozen yards away…the engine coughed and died. Sameer swore in Arabic and turned to the other two. "We'll have to walk the rest of the way."

"Ok" said Tina, keeping her eyes closed.

He smiled at her steadfast expression and helped her out of the buggy "Come on". He grabbed a bag out of the back.

Wahim protected Tina from the worst of the wind as they slowly made their way towards the cave. The wind and sand whistled around them and Tina gasped as something hit her in the face. She grabbed it off and peeked at it, it was just a bit of grass. She flicked it away and shuffled her feet as Wahim pushed her forward.

They eventually made it to the cave, Sameer threw the bag down first, jumped down after it and Wahim lowered Tina to him. He scooped Tina up effortlessly and helped her to her feet. "Thanks" she dimpled at him.

He grinned back as Wahim dropped down beside them.

"Now what?" asked Tina as she blinked into the darkness.

Sameer rummaged in the bag and produced a flashlight "I didn't know we'd really have to use it so soon." It flickered on and filled the entrance with warm golden light.

"Follow me" he said as walked into the cave.

They walked into a hollow chamber, it was a bit damp but after Wahim examined it, it was declared free of creepy-crawlies and any wild animals.

Tina slumped down against a rock "I guess we have to wait here until the storm ends, huh?"

Sameer nodded and pulled some food out of the bag "Hey, at least we have some food and drink." He said cheerfully

Tina pouted "Great, more food…I'm gonna be even more fat when I get out of this mess."

Wahim shook his head and took an energy bar.

Sameer looked at Tina "You're not fat"

"Yeah right" snorted Tina

Wahim indicated to Sameer that he better keep quiet.

They both settled themselves against rocks, planning to wait out the storm. Wahim started to doze off but Tina glared at the food.

"Why don't you just eat?" asked Sameer

Tina now switched her glare to him "Why did you rescue us? If it weren't for you, we would have still been inside the dry, warm hanger instead of freezing in this cave!"

Samee lifted an eyebrow "You really want to be there?"

Tina glared some more and then laughed sheepishly "No, I guess not…but seriously, why did you rescue us?"

Sameer looked up at the ceiling "I guess I thought what my uncle was doing was wrong, especially since he took you so far away from your home…" he trailed off.

"Is that all?" asked Tina, feeling inexplicably disappointed.

"Oh, and 'cause he was doing it for money." Sameer answered, "I think money is so pointless…you don't need it to be happy."

Tina nodded "Yeah, but at least it stops you from worrying about stuff."

Sameer smiled cynically "It creates a lot more problems than it solves…you're living proof of it."

They sat in silence, until Tina asked "You speak English well, where did you learn it from?"

"I lived in England with my mother and father until I was 12, when they died, my uncle got the family business and brought me to live here."

Tina grimaced slightly "Oh, I'm sorry."

Sameer smiled at her "Its ok"

He looked down "You know, you really should eat something; God knows how long we'll be stuck here."

Tina picked up a packet of crisps gingerly "This is gonna go straight to my hips."

Sameer laughed "Why are you so worried about what you look like? I think you look great…more than great actually…" he finished shyly.

Tina looked at him and laughed "Thanks…you don't look so bad yourself." She reached over and ruffled his hair, loads of sand fell from it and Sameer laughed too.

"You should get some sleep…or at least try" he said as he settled, trying to find a comfortable spot on the hard floor. The wind still howled outside the cave.

"You think I can get to sleep in this noise?" asked Tina

"I guess not…you wanna talk some more?" he propped himself on his elbow and looked at her.

"Sure" answered Tina

So they both lay together and talked and ate over the storm. Surprisingly, their lives weren't that different. Sameer joked, and Tina almost forgot that she was lying in a smelly, wet cave, in the middle of a sandstorm, with no guarantee when she would get home.

"Where were you planning to take us if this storm hadn't hit us?" asked Tina curiously.

"Well, we were quite near Jeddah, so I would've taken you there and let you contact your father." said Sameer matter-of-factly.

"And what would you have done?"

Sameer blinked "I dunno…I guess I would've gone back to my uncle..."

Tina noted the sad expression on his face and made a mental note to herself.

Wahim stirred and they both looked at him, when he didn't wake up, they turned back.

Tina yawned but tried to stifle it; Sameer saw it and told her to go to sleep.

She pulled off her jacket and bundled it under her head, and slowly drifted off.

When she shivered in her sleep, Sameer pulled off his jacket and covered her with it. She had a few grains of sand on her face; he bent low and blew it off gently. Tina still woke up with the slight breeze.

She looked up at him and smiled slightly, she got up a bit too fast and his lips brushed against hers. They both froze and looked at each other, Tina gazed in Sameer's eyes as he pulled her closer and lowered his head, she closed her eyes as he gently kissed her.

'Now this is more like it' thought Tina to herself as she wound her arms around Sameer's neck and pulled him close. Tina saw stars in her eyes as she and Sameer floated up to the warm, cozy heavens, she wished she could stay like this forever…

A cough came from nearby and Sameer lifted his head to see Wahim glaring at him. "You're awake" said Tina hurriedly as she smoothed down her hair.

"Yeah" grunted Wahim, "What are you doing Tina? How do you know whether you can even trust Sameer? His uncle kidnapped us after all."

"Sameer isn't his uncle, and he helped us escape!" Tina declared angrily

"To do what?" Wahim challenged "seduce the daughter of one of the Saudi Arabia's richest men for his own ends!"

"Wahim!" shrieked Tina "What is wrong with you? At last I find a guy who likes me for myself and you go and ruin it!"

Wahim was about to speak when Sameer broke in "Wahim, I'm sorry…I really do like Tina…whether you believe me or not…and I'm sorry you don't believe in me…but at least give me the benefit of doubt, I'd rather die than hurt Tina."

Wahim contemplated this for a few moments "Fine…but don't do anything until you get the approval of Mr. Hakim-Baba."

Sameer nodded "As you wish…" he cocked his head "I think the storm stopped anyway, lets get out of here."

They all crept out of the cave, the storm really had stopped and Wahim climbed out, he looked around and gave an 'all-clear'. Tina gave Sameer a quick peck before she was helped out by Wahim. "I thought I said 'don't do anything'?" Wahim told Tina, as he spied the kiss.

"Give me a break, Wahim" Tina giggled.

Wahim shook his head in resignation as Sameer clambered out.

The group returned to the buggy, which was covered in sand. They brushed the worst of it away and Wahim tried the engine. It didn't start…not a sound.

"Don't tell me have to walk to Jeddah?" Tina wailed

"Maybe not" Wahim heard a helicopter approaching and blinked into the sun as he tried to work out where it was coming from.

"Look" pointed Sameer at a growing dot in the sky "Let's wave!"

and all of them waved and shouted at the approaching helicopter. "It's seen us!" yelled Tina joyfully as the helicopter got closer and flew lower.

It landed a few feet away and a few men stepped out. Tina recognized one of them "Its Daddy!" she declared happily to Wahim, as she ran towards them. She hugged her father and even cried a little. "Daddy, I am so happy to see you!"

Mr. Hakim-Baba hugged her back tightly and smiled at the approaching Wahim. "I'm sorry, sir…" began Wahim humbly

"Forget it, old friend, I'm just glad that we found you safe and sound." Said Mr. Hakim-Baba amiably, he caught sight of Sameer "Who's this?" he asked.

Wahim was about to answer but Tina broke in "This is Sameer, Papa, he helped us escape…and he took us to safety when the sandstorm came…and…" she stood on tip-toe and whispered in her father's ear.

"Is that so? Well, I think I'm indebted to this young man." said Mr. Hakim-Baba "What can I do to repay you?"

"Nothing sir, it was my duty to do what I did." said Sameer humbly

Tina whispered in her father's ear again, he nodded as he listened to her and then said "Go and ask him."

Tina pulled Sameer away from the group "Sameer, I don't know whether you'd want to, but it would be really cool if you did, and I would like it if you did and I'm sure you'd be happy there…"

Sameer listened to her with a bemused expression "Tina, what exactly are you trying to ask me?"

Tina stopped in the middle of her tirade "Oh, I wanted to ask if you wanted to come back to New York with us?"

Sameer looked amazed "Are you sure? I mean, would your father be ok with it?"

"Papa told me to ask you, so I'm pretty sure he approves." Tina smiled

"If you're sure, I'd love to go back with you…" he said hesitantly

Tina squealed and threw her arms around him. They walked back to the group "He said 'yes'!"

"Welcome, my boy!" said Mr. Hakim-Baba and ushered them all onto the helicopter.

They all climbed into the helicopter and flew to Jeddah's international airport. Mr. Hakim-Baba talked to Sameer throughout the trip, where they worked out what Sameer would do once they reached New York, Sameer had a few relatives there that would look after him.

"Papa, where did you know where to find us?" Tina asked her father curiously.

"Well, you know that pendant of your's…" he indicated the silver necklace at the throat "Well, that has a tracking device in it…like some other articles of yours…" he laughed.

Tina sat next to Sameer, and eventually, when she caught her father's eye, he nodded at her and Tina grinned back. Tina smiled at Sameer and put her hand in his, Sameer squeezed her hand and smiled back at her.

"Oh man, I can't wait to get back and get a salad!" said Tina as she sank in her seat.

Sameer looked at her, and her eyes twinkled "Ok, maybe a salad and an ice-cream."

Mr. Hakim-Baba looked at Tina surprised "No more diet, Tina?" he enquired.

"Nope" she shook her head "because some people like me the way that I am."

Mr. Hakim-Baba nodded "I wonder who 'some people' are?"

Tina caught Sameer's eye and he winked.

…………………………………………………………………………………………..

_Even I don't know what to think of this final chapter…I hoped you liked it…review if you do…review even if you don't!_

_Check out my other PD story…I finished that too._

_Cheers everyone_

_Thanx 4 the reviews_

_-Gonnabe Writer-_


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